Business

Ukrainian Grain Shipments Drop Due To Growing Ship Backups

(CTN NEWS) – LONDON – Even though a U.N.-mediated agreement aims to keep food flowing to developing countries, the volume of grain leaving Ukraine has decreased.

Ship inspections have decreased to half what they were four months ago, and the backlog of boats is building as the anniversary of Russia’s invasion draws closer.

According to Ukrainian and possibly American officials, the inspections are being slowed down, but Moscow has denied this.

Concerns are raised about the impact on those going hungry in Africa, the Middle East, and parts of Asia — countries that depend on readily available food supplies from the Black Sea region — if less wheat, barley, and other grain is exported from Ukraine, known as the “breadbasket of the world.”

The difficulties arise as separate agreements that Turkey and the U.N. struck last summer to maintain supplies coming from the warring countries and down skyrocketing food costs are up for renewal next month.

/ AP

Moreover, wheat, other grains, sunflower oil, and fertilizer are major exports from Russia, and officials there have voiced their displeasure about the delay in delivering these vital nutrients to crops.

According to the Joint Coordination Center in Istanbul, under the terms of the agreement, food shipments from three Ukrainian ports decreased from 3.7 million metric tonnes in December to 3 million in January.

There, inspection teams from Turkey, the United Nations, Russia, and Ukraine ensure that ships carry only agricultural goods and no weaponry.

The supply reduction is equivalent to Kenya and Somalia’s monthly food consumption. It comes after average daily inspections, which peaked at 10.6 in October, slowed to 5.7 last month and 6 this month.

This has contributed to a backlog of ships waiting to be inspected or join the Black Sea Grain Initiative in the waters of Turkey. According to the JCC, 152 ships are waiting in line, up 50% from January.

Ruslan Sakhautdinov, leader of the Ukrainian delegation to the JCC, noted that this month, the wait time for a vessel to be examined after applying was 28 days on average. It is an extra week over January.

Shipments are also impacted by variables, including bad weather making inspections difficult, shippers’ requests to participate in the program, port activity, and vessel capacity.

Corn plants are seen at sunset in a farm near Rafaela, Argentina, April 9, 2018. (Reuters)

If the inspections continue to move slowly, “I think it will become a problem,” said William Osnato, a senior research analyst at the farm data and analytics company Gro Intelligence.

“In a month or two, you’ll learn that a few million tonnes didn’t escape because the process is moving too slowly.”

“By creating the bottleneck, you’re opening up the flow,” he continued. “But as long as they’re getting some out, it’s not a total disaster.”

Samantha Power, the administrator of USAID, and Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the ambassador of the United States to the United Nations, have accused Russia of delay in food shipments to vulnerable countries.

Russian inspectors have been “systematically delaying the inspection of warships” for months, according to a statement posted on Facebook on Wednesday by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and Infrastructure Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov.

They said Moscow obstructed the deal’s implementation before “taking advantage of the possibility of uninterrupted commerce shipping from Russian Black Sea ports.”

After harvesting a significant wheat crop, Osnato suggested that Russia might be slowing inspections “to pick up more business.”

/ AP

Russian wheat shipments more than doubled to 3.8 million tonnes last month from January 2022, before the invasion, according to figures from financial data source Refinitiv.

According to Refinitiv, Russian wheat shipments reached or nearly reached record highs in November, December, and January, rising 24% over the same three months a year earlier. In 2022–2023, it was predicted that Russia would export 44 million tonnes of wheat.

The claims of purposeful slowdowns are “just not accurate,” according to Alexander Pchelyakov, a spokesman for the Russian diplomatic delegation to U.N. institutions in Geneva, who made the statement last month.

Russian authorities have also complained that their nation’s fertilizer is not being exported by the contract, casting doubt on the renewal of the four-month agreement that is set to expire on March 18.

Extending the agreement without demonstrable outcomes is “unreasonable,” Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Vershinin told the privately owned Russian-language TV channel RTVI on Monday.

According to U.N. officials, Russian fertilizer has become stuck; they hope the agreement will be extended.

The fact is, I believe this will be conclusive and persuasive, said Martin Griffiths, the U.N. undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs, in a statement to reporters on Wednesday. “That operation must continue for the benefit of the global south and world food security.”

AFP

Bakery manager Tolulope Phillips in Lagos, Nigeria, has personally experienced the effects. He claims that since the Ukraine conflict started, flour prices have increased by 136%.

Nigeria, a major buyer of Russian wheat, has experienced an increase in the price of bread and other foods.

Phillips said that conditions like this are typically too unstable for any firm to endure.

“You must adjust your costs to reflect this increase, which impacts more than just flour; it also affects flavoring, sugar, diesel, and energy prices. The cost of production has therefore generally increased.”

After reaching record highs in 2022, global food prices, especially wheat prices, have returned to levels reached before the Ukrainian War.

Because consumers are paying in dollars in rising economies that depend on imported food, such as Nigeria, Osnato claimed that weakening currencies keep prices high.

Also, food was already expensive before Russia invaded Ukraine, which worsened the food crisis since droughts hurt crops everywhere, from the Americas to the Middle East, according to Osnato.

He predicted that prices would likely remain high for more than a year. Good weather and a few successful crop seasons are now required to become more at ease with global supply of a variety of grains and “see a major drop in food prices globally.”

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Business

PepsiCo Reduces Revenue Projections As North American Snacks And Key International Markets Underperform.

(VOR News) – In the third quarter of this year, Pepsi’s net income was $2.93 billion, which is equivalent to $2.13 per share. This was attributed to the company.

This is in stark contrast to net income of $3.09 billion, which is equivalent to $2.24 per share, during the same period in the previous year. The company’s earnings per share were $2.31 when expenses were excluded.

Net sales decreased by 0.6%, totaling $23.32 billion. Organic sales increased by 1.3% during the quarter when the effects of acquisitions, divestitures, and currency changes are excluded.

Pepsi’s beverage sales fell this quarter.

The most recent report indicates that the beverage and food sectors of the organization experienced a 2% decline in volume. Consumers of all income levels are demonstrating a change in their purchasing habits, as indicated by CEOs’ statements from the previous quarter.

Pepsi’s entire volume was adversely affected by the lackluster demand they encountered in North America. An increasing number of Americans are becoming more frugal, reducing the number of snacks they ingest, and reducing the number of times they purchase at convenience stores.

Furthermore, Laguarta observed that the increase in sales was partially attributed to the election that occurred in Mexico during the month of June.

The most significant decrease in volume was experienced by Quaker Foods North America, which was 13%. In December, the company announced its initial recall in response to a potential salmonella infection.

Due to the probability of an illness, the recall was extended in January. Pepsi officially closed a plant that was implicated in the recalls in June, despite the fact that manufacturing had already been halted.

Jamie Caulfield, the Chief Financial Officer of Pepsi and Laguarta, has indicated that the recalls are beginning to have a lessening effect.

Frito-Lay experienced a 1.5% decline in volume in North America. The company has been striving to improve the value it offers to consumers and the accessibility of its snack line, which includes SunChips, Cheetos, and Stacy’s pita chips, in the retail establishments where it is sold.

Despite the fact that the category as a whole has slowed down in comparison to the results of previous years, the level of activity within the division is progressively increasing.

Pepsi executives issued a statement in which they stated that “Salty and savory snacks have underperformed year-to-date after outperforming packaged food categories in previous years.”

Pepsi will spend more on Doritos and Tostitos in the fall and winter before football season.

The company is currently promoting incentive packets for Tostitos and Ruffles, which contain twenty percent more chips than the standard package.

Pepsi is expanding its product line in order to more effectively target individuals who are health-conscious. The business announced its intention to acquire Siete Foods for a total of $1.2 billion approximately one week ago. The restaurant serves Mexican-American cuisine, which is typically modified to meet the dietary needs of a diverse clientele.

The beverage segment of Pepsi in North America experienced a three percent decrease in volume. Despite the fact that the demand for energy drinks, such as Pepsi’s Rockstar, has decreased as a result of consumers visiting convenience stores, the sales of well-known brands such as Gatorade and Pepsi have seen an increase throughout the quarter.

Laguarta expressed his opinion to the analysts during the company’s conference call, asserting, “I am of the opinion that it is a component of the economic cycle that we are currently experiencing, and that it will reverse itself in the future, once consumers feel better.”

Additionally, it has been noted that the food and beverage markets of South Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, and Africa have experienced a decline in sales volume. The company cut its forecast for organic revenue for the entire year on Tuesday due to the business’s second consecutive quarter of lower-than-anticipated sales.

The company’s performance during the quarter was adversely affected by the Quaker Foods North America recalls, the decrease in demand in the United States, and the interruptions that occurred in specific international markets, as per the statements made by Chief Executive Officer Ramon Laguarta.

Pepsi has revised its forecast for organic sales in 2024, shifting from a 4% growth rate to a low single-digit growth rate. The company reiterated its expectation that the core constant currency profitability per share will increase by a minimum of 8% in comparison to the previous year.

The company’s shares declined by less than one percent during premarket trading. The following discrepancies between the company’s report and the projections of Wall Street were identified by LSEG in a survey of analysts:

SOURCE: CNBC

Business

Old National Bank And Infosys Broaden Their Strategic Partnership.

(VOR News) – Old National Bank, a commercial bank with its headquarters in the Midwest, and Infosys, a firm that specializes in information technology, have recently entered into a strategic expansion of their link, which has been in place for the past four years.

This expansion is more likely to take place sooner rather than later, with the likelihood being higher.

For the purpose of making it possible for Old National Bank to make use of the services, solutions, and platforms that are offered by Infosys, the objective of this expansion is to make it possible for the bank to transform its operations and processes through the application of automation and GenAI, as well as to change significant business areas.

This lets the bank leverage Infosys’ services, solutions, and platforms.

Old National Bank Chairman and CEO Jim Ryan said, “At Old National, we are committed to creating exceptional experiences for both our customers and our fellow employees.”

This statement is applicable to Old National Bank. Infosys is carefully managing the business process innovations that it is putting us through, putting a strong emphasis on efficiency and value growth throughout the process to ensure that it is carried out efficiently.

This is a routine occurrence throughout the entire operation. Because of Infosys’ dedication to our development and success, we are incredibly appreciative of the assistance they have provided.

Old National has been receiving assistance from Infosys in the process of updating its digital environment since the year 2020, according to the aforementioned company.

Ever since that time, the company has been providing assistance. The provision of this assistance has been accomplished through the utilization of a model that is not only powerful but also capable of functioning on its own power.

Infosys currently ranks Old National thirty-first out of the top thirty US banks.

This ranking is based on the fact that Old National is the nation’s largest banking corporation.

It is estimated that the total value of the company’s assets is approximately fifty-three billion dollars, while the assets that are currently being managed by the organization are valued at thirty billion dollars.

Dennis Gada, the Executive Vice President and Global Head of Banking and Financial Services, stated that “Old National Bank and Infosys possess a robust cultural and strategic alignment in the development, management, and enhancement of enterprise-scale solutions to transform the bank’s operations and facilitate growth.”

This remark referenced the exceptional cultural and strategic synergy between the two organizations. Dennis Gada is the one who asserted this claim. This was articulated explicitly concerning the exceptional cultural congruence and strategy alignment of the two organizations.

We are pleased to announce that the implementation of Infosys Topaz will substantially expedite the transformation of Old National Bank’s business processes and customer service protocols. We are exceedingly enthusiastic about this matter. We are quite thrilled about this specific component of the scenario.

Medium-sized banks operating regionally will continue to benefit from our substantial expertise in the sector, technology, and operations. This specific market segment of Infosys will persist in benefiting from our extensive experience. This phenomenon will enable this market sector to sustain substantial growth and efficiency benefits.

SOURCE: THBL

Business

American Water, The Largest Water Utility In US, Is Targeted By A Cyberattack

The largest regulated water and wastewater utility company in the United States stated Monday that it had been the target of a cyberattack, forcing the company to halt invoicing to consumers.

American Water, The Largest Water Utility In US, Is Targeted By A Cyberattack

American Water, based in New Jersey and serving over 14 million people in 14 states and 18 military facilities, said it learned of the unauthorized activity on Thursday and quickly took precautions, including shutting down certain systems. The business does not believe the attack had an impact on its facilities or operations and said employees were working “around the clock” to determine the origin and scale of the attack.

water

The corporation stated that it has alerted legal enforcement and is cooperating with them. It also stated that consumers will not be charged late fees while its systems are unavailable.

According to their website, American Water operates over 500 water and wastewater systems in around 1,700 communities across California, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.

SOURCE | AP