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International news, News

United loses $1 billion in market value after man dragged off flight

Published 11 April 2017

Updated 1:59 PM EDT April 11, 2017 London
Shares in United Airlines slipped by close to 3% Tuesday as the company scrambled to address a video showing a passenger being forcibly dragged off an overbooked flight.
United Continental Holdings weathered the initial waves of anger caused by the video on Monday, with shares closing with a 0.9% gain. But momentum shifted by Tuesday morning.
Earlier in the day, the stock was even lower, knocking off close to $1 billion off the company’s market value. By the afternoon, the stock had recovered from the worst losses — but its market value was still off by $600 million.
The video, which surfaced Monday, showed a passenger removed on Sunday from United flight 3411 at Chicago O’Hare International Airport.
Several passengers recorded the incident on their phones and posted video on social media showing three Chicago Department of Aviation security officers dragging the man, who has not been identified, down the aisle by the arms and legs while other passengers shout in protest.
He continued to resist after he was removed and ran back onto the airplane, face bloodied from the encounter.
The incident sparked a massive reaction online.
Following the backlash, United CEO Oscar Munoz issued a statement calling the incident “upsetting” and apologized “for having to re-accommodate” customers.
But that failed to appease many customers. Public relations analysts have also panned the company’s public response to the incident.
Anger was not limited to the U.S. The incident was the number one trending topic Tuesday on Weibo, China’s answer to Twitter, attracting more than 100 million views.
China is one of United’s most important growth markets.
The Chicago-based carrier is the U.S.’s third largest airline by passenger traffic, operating more than 4,500 flights a day to 339 airports across five continents.
United released its traffic figures for March on Monday afternoon, reporting 3% growth over the previous year.
The company has been trying to revamp its image after ranking near the bottom of airline customer satisfaction indexes for several years. It is updating its fleet and last year added free snacks, premium coffee, better Wi-Fi and upgraded airport lounges.
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Business, Travel

Port in St Lucia To Make Way For Mega Cruise Ships

Published 11 April 2017

CASTRIES, St Lucia, Friday April 7, 2017 – St Lucia wants some mega cruise ships to come calling.

And it’s preparing for the first one by December. The Breasting Dolphin Berth at Pointe Seraphine is to be extended to facilitate that and other mega cruise vessels at a cost of US$15 million.

Minister for Ports Stephenson King said that due to the growth projections for the cruise sector “there is a greater need for us to place emphasis on the improvement, development and the enhancement of the cruise facilities and infrastructure on the island.”

“This Government has made a firm commitment not only to improve Port Castries and to consider a new location for the establishment of a new commercial port but also to continue to improve on the cruise ship facilities and by extension to look to the south of the country to establish a major cruise port in the south in Vieux Fort that will compliment a number of the economic initiatives that the Government has committed itself to,” he said.

“This is a holistic approach, a global initiative, on the part of the Government looking beyond the shores, beyond the sand and sea, and looking to the international arena to see how St Lucia can maintain its position and be able to offer two world class facilities, one in the north and one in the south.”

Minister King said government also hopes the project will place the island as the number one cruise ship destination in the Caribbean.

Once the berth is completed, St Lucia is expected to see an increase of 20 percent in the call of vessels to Port Castries and an increase in passenger arrivals by 19 percent.

Business, Health

Trump Refuses Funding to UN Agency that Helps Caribbean

Published 11 April 2017

WASHINGTON, United States, Monday April 10, 2017 – United States President Donald Trump is pulling his country’s funding to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), an agency that assists 22 Caribbean countries in their efforts to tackle teen pregnancies and other reproductive health issues.

The US State Department has announced that it will not forward congressionally-approved uS$32.5 million to the UNFPA because of its partnership with a Chinese government programme that includes forced abortions and sterilizations.

“While there is no evidence that UNFPA directly engages in coercive abortions or involuntary sterilizations in China, the agency continues to partner with [China’s National Health and Family Planning Commission] on family planning, and thus can be found to support, or participate in the management of China’s coercive policies,” it said.

But the UNFPA has insisted that it does no such thing. It said the decision to deny funding for its life-saving work is based on the erroneous claim that UNFPA “supports, or participates in the management of, a programme of coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization” in China.

“UNFPA refutes this claim, as all of its work promotes the human rights of individuals and couples to make their own decisions, free of coercion or discrimination. Indeed, United Nations Member States have long described UNFPA’s work in China as a force for good,” it said.

It noted that the support from the US in previous years has saved tens of thousands of mothers from preventable deaths and disabilities, and helped UNFPA combat gender-based violence and reduce the scourge of maternal deaths.

UNFPA works in more than 150 countries and territories. Those include the Caribbean nations of Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Curaçao, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia, Sint Maarten, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, and Turks and Caicos Islands.

In those countries, UNFPA works to improve the reproductive health of the most vulnerable, including responding to the high numbers of unintended pregnancies and gaps in maternal health.

Family planning associations and similar agencies in the region benefit from the work of the UNFPA.

UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric has predicted the US funding loss “could have devastating effects on the health of vulnerable women and girls and their families around the world”.

Entertainment

Rihanna Shining Bright Like A Diamond As She Joins Forces With Swiss Jewelry Designer

Published 11 April 2017

NEW YORK, United States, Monday April 10, 2017 – Rihanna is adding jewelry designer to her resume.

The Barbadian-born international superstar has teamed up with Swiss luxury-jewellery and watch designer Chopard to introduce the new “Rihanna Loves Chopard” collection of high jewels that will debut in stores this summer.

The collection of pieces that blend urban chic with classic glamour was co-designed with the Swiss jeweler’s co-president and creative director Caroline Scheufele.

“Rihanna and I collaborated closely on the collections, so you can feel her unstoppable energy, strong creativity, and inherent sense of design in every piece,” Scheufele said in a statement from the company. “With her unique style, she redefines the way people see and wear jewelry.”

The two collections were inspired by Rihanna’s “island roots – the lush gardens of Barbados and the electricity of Carnival”, according to Chopard.

“I have always been in love with Chopard’s exquisite jewellery, so to actually design collections with them is something I still can’t believe,” Rihanna said. “It was a really incredible process and I learned so much. I can’t wait for everyone to see it.”

The first collection, featuring nine pieces crafted from 18 carat rose ethical gold mixed with a jungle-green shade hand-picked by Rihanna, will be unveiled in full later this month and will be available to purchase in June.

The second range – the haute joaillerie collection – will debut next month as part of the 70th anniversary of the Cannes Film Festival, to celebrate Chopard’s 20th year as the official partner of the world-famous movie event.

But Rihanna has given fans a preview before. The singer wore the multicolored chandelier earrings and a marquise-cut diamond solitaire ring to this year’s Grammy Awards.

Health

Promising Zika Vaccine Moves To Next Phase Of Human Trials

Published 11 April 2017

WASHINGTON DC, USA, Monday April 10, 2017 – With projections putting the regional cost of the ongoing spread of the Zika virus at billions of dollars, the news that we are one step closer to a vaccine against the mosquito-borne disease is timely.

On Friday, Dr Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), said that the DNA vaccine candidate developed by scientists at NIAID’s Vaccine Research Center has been successful in both animal trials and the first human trial.

Following this success, the agency, which is part of the US National Institutes of Health, has moved into the next stage of testing.

Volunteers have been signing up at clinics across the Americas to participate in the tests which are being carried out at 11 sites including those in Puerto Rico, Brazil, Mexico and Miami.

This leg of the trial will involve 90 healthy adults divided into groups who will get different doses of the vaccine.

The next step, starting mid-year, will see researchers conducting a randomized control trial in 2,400 adults and adolescents who have not been infected with the virus but who live in areas where it has been detected.

The vaccine will not be tested in pregnant women, but it will be tested in women of child-bearing age. Some of the volunteers will be given a placebo.

The vaccine could be moved to the next phase by the end of the year if all goes according to plan.

The US$100 million trial is fully funded through this phase, but it is not yet clear whether funding is available for the next phase.

The Trump administration has proposed an 18 percent cut to the institutes’ budget, but it is not known what would be lost if the cuts get through Congress unchanged.

Fauci insisted that the third phase of the trial is “a very high priority for us, and we will keep this as one of our higher priorities.”

Noting that Zika will probably not go away any time soon, Fauci said that one of his goals is to develop a vaccine to keep children safe so when people of that generation have children of their own, they will not pass the virus along during pregnancy.

There is evidence of mosquito-transmitted Zika in at least 84 countries, meaning there are thousands of foetuses at risk for birth defects if their mothers become infected.

Birth defects linked to the virus include microcephaly, in which the head and brain don’t develop properly; vision and hearing defects; and learning disabilities.

People of any age who are infected with Zika can experience heart problems. The viral infection can also trigger Guillain-Barré, a disorder in which the body’s immune system attacks nerves, leading to potential paralysis and even death.

Scientists around the world are racing to create viable versions of a Zika vaccine.