NEWSLETTER
Thursday / September 29Sep 29
Thursday / August 25
Iran nuclear talks
Iran has received Washington's response to an EU-drafted final offer for saving Tehran's 2015 nuclear deal with major powers, Iran's foreign ministry said on Wednesday.
"This evening Iran received the U.S. response through the European Union. The careful review of the response has started in Tehran. Iran will share its view with the EU, as the coordinator of the nuclear talks, upon completion of Tehran's review," Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani said.
Iran last week responded to the EU's text with "additional views and considerations" while calling on the United States to show flexibility to resolve three remaining issues.
US State Department spokesperson Ned Price confirmed that Washington had responded to Tehran's comments on the EU text. "Our review of those comments has now concluded. We have responded to the EU today," Price said.
Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid said on Wednesday that "on the table right now is a bad deal" which would give Teheran $100 billion a year to destabilise the Middle East.
German energy woes to worsen
Germany's government is concerned about possible problems with the coal supply for power plants in the autumn and winter due to low water levels on the river Rhine and the oil supply in eastern parts of the country.
"Due to very reduced domestic shipping, accumulated coal stocks could quickly fall," a document entitled "Energy Supply Assessment," drawn up by the Economy Ministry said. It cited the low Rhine water levels which have reduced the volume of coal that can be transported by river barges.
On Wednesday, Germany's Cabinet approved legislation to prioritize energy transport on part of the country's rail networks.
Russian gas giant Gazprom has slashed gas flows to Germany via the Nord Stream 1 pipeline to 20% of capacity, citing technical issues. Berlin has called the move politically motivated, in view of Europe's sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine.
"Additional storage sites which have been and are being procured in southern Germany will probably not be filled by winter," said the report, Reuters reports.
Japan's energy options
Japan will restart more idled nuclear plants and look at developing next-generation reactors, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said on Wednesday.
Japan has kept most of its nuclear plants idled in the decade since a massive earthquake and tsunami in 2011 triggered a nuclear meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant.
Kishida told reporters he had instructed officials to come up with concrete measures by the year end, including on "gaining the understanding of the public" on sustainable energy and nuclear power.
Kishida also said the government would look at extending the lifespan of existing reactors.
US stocks
Stocks rose Wednesday, snapping a three-day decline in the Dow and the S&P500.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 59 points, or 0.18%, to 32,969. The S&P 500 climbed 0.29% to 4,140, and the Nasdaq Composite advanced 0.41% to 12,431.
Energy, real estate and financials were the best-performing sectors in the S&P 500. Cruise lines were among the best-performing stocks in the broader market index.
