International
Petrobras notches $5.9 bn profit in Q3
AFP
Brazilian state-run oil company Petrobras reported a hefty net profit of $5.9 billion for the third quarter Thursday, beating analysts’ expectations as oil prices continued to climb.
It was the fourth straight quarterly profit for the company, up from a loss of $236 million for the same period in 2020, when the coronavirus pandemic had sent crude prices crashing.
Since then, Petrobras has rebounded on the back of soaring prices — so much so that far-right President Jair Bolsonaro said earlier on Thursday it was making too much profit.
“Petrobras needs to be a company that doesn’t post excessively high profits, as it has been doing,” he said in his weekly live address on social media.
“It has to play a social role, in the good sense of the term.”
Bolsonaro made the remarks just before the company announced its profit for the July-September period, which followed a profit of $8.1 billion for April-June.
Petrobras said the boost had come largely from the rebound of Brent crude prices to an average of $73.47 a barrel in the third quarter, up 70.9 percent in a year.
The company has largely passed that increase on to customers at the pump, drawing the ire of consumers — and Bolsonaro — as fuel prices soar.
The president had also criticized Petrobras on Wednesday, saying, “It’s a state-run company that, with all due respect, is just giving me headaches.”
He said he was looking at putting the company “on the radar” to be privatized as part of his government’s massive sell-off of state-run firms.
Bolsonaro has not shied away from shaking things up at Petrobras in the past.
In February, he appointed army reserve general Joaquim Silva e Luna as chief executive of Petrobras, replacing respected CEO Roberto Castello Branco shortly after saying the firm should not be constantly “surprising people” with price increases.
International
Man arrested after deliberately driving into seven children in Osaka
Japanese police arrested a man on Thursday after he rammed his car into a group of seven schoolchildren in an apparent deliberate attack in the city of Osaka.
The children, who were on their way home from school, sustained injuries and were taken to the hospital. All seven remained conscious, according to local authorities.
An Osaka police officer, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the suspect is a 28-year-old man from Tokyo. The officer shared statements the man made after his arrest: “I was fed up with everything, so I decided to kill people by driving into several elementary school children,” the suspect reportedly said.
The man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.
The injured children, aged between seven and eight, included a seven-year-old girl who suffered a fractured jaw. The six other children—all boys—suffered minor injuries such as bruises and scratches and were undergoing medical evaluation.
Witnesses described the car as “zigzagging” before hitting the children. One witness told Nippon TV that a girl was “covered in blood” and the others appeared to have scratches.
Another witness said the driver, who was wearing a face mask, looked to be in shock when school staff pulled him from the vehicle.
Violent crimes are rare in Japan, though serious incidents do occur from time to time. In 2008, Tomohiro Kato drove a two-ton truck into pedestrians in Tokyo’s Akihabara district, then fatally stabbed several victims. Seven people were killed in that attack.
Internacionales
Clashes erupt during may day protests across France amid calls for better wages
May Day protests in France were marked by a heavy police presence and clashes between demonstrators and law enforcement in several cities.
In Paris, Lyon, and Nantes, thousands took to the streets to demand better wages, fairer working conditions, and to voice their dissatisfaction with President Emmanuel Macron’s government.
While the majority of the demonstrations remained peaceful, isolated confrontations broke out in some areas. Protesters threw objects at the police, prompting the use of tear gas and resulting in several arrests.
Videos showing police crackdowns circulated widely on social media, drawing criticism from labor unions and human rights advocates, who denounced the authorities’ response to the protests.
International
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem claimed that Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has deported “more than half a million” migrants due to pressure from former President Donald Trump.
During a cabinet meeting highlighting the “achievements” of Trump’s administration in its first 100 days, Noem asserted that under the Republican leader’s influence, “Mexico has finally come to the table” to negotiate on migration and fentanyl trafficking.
“The president of Mexico told me she has returned just over half a million people before they reached our border,” Noem stated, criticizing media reports that suggest the Biden administration deported more migrants than Trump’s.
“I wish those deportations were counted,” Noem added, “because those people never made it to our border—she sent them back because you made her.” She went on to thank Trump: “They never made it here because they got the message—because you were so aggressive.”
Noem has made controversial claims about Sheinbaum in the past, prompting the Mexican leader to refute them.
On April 1, Sheinbaum responded to one such statement by declaring, “The president answers to only one authority, and that is the people of Mexico,” after Noem said on Fox News that she gave Sheinbaum “a list of things Trump would like to see” and that Mexico’s actions would determine whether Trump granted tariff relief.
Man arrested after deliberately driving into seven children in Osaka
Clashes erupt during may day protests across France amid calls for better wages
Kristi Noem credits Trump for mass migrant deportations by mexican president
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