Biden lobbied Saudis to postpone oil production cuts until after the midterms: The Biden administration has acknowledged asking the Saudi Arabian government to delay the OPEC+ vote to cut oil production until the cartel”™s next meeting, which is scheduled for December, after the U.S. midterm elections. National Security Council spokesman John Kirby issued a statement that said the White House tried to influence the Saudis by showing “there was no market basis to cut production targets, and that they could easily wait for the next OPEC meeting to see how things developed.” However, the Saudi foreign ministry stated the decision by OPEC+ to reduce production by 2 million barrels per day beginning in November was “a purely economic context” and that delaying the reduction to December would have “negative economic consequences.”
Supermarket chains to combine: The nation”™s two largest supermarket chains are combining into a mega-entity: Kroger Co. plans to acquire Albertsons Cos. for $24.6 billion. Both companies are publicly traded and any combination would require federal regulatory approval. Kroger operates more than 2,700 grocery stores that include the regional chains Fred Meyer and Ralph”™s, while Albertsons runs nearly 2,300 supermarkets including the Safeway and Vons chains.
Setbacks for Trump: Former President Donald Trump had two legal setbacks on Thursday: The U.S. Supreme Court rejected without comment his effort to restore a special master”™s power to review approximately 100 classified documents federal agents seized from his Mar-a-Lago property, and the House of Representatives”™ January 6 Committee voted unanimously to issue a subpoena forcing him to testify about the events that led to the Capitol Hill riots. Trump did not issue a comment on the Supreme Court decision, but posted on his Truth Social site asking why the House committee waited until a few weeks before the midterm elections to call on him to testify.
Netflix to debut ad-supported tier: Netflix has announced it will launch an advertising-supported tier next month. The new Netflix Basic With Ads will premiere in the U.S. on Nov. 3 for $6.99 per month, and it will be available in 11 other countries including Australia, Canada, Japan, Mexico and the U.K. The Basic With Ads tier will be $3 cheaper than Netflix”™s Basic plan, but the streaming service warned that roughly 5% to 10% of its titles will not be available on the new ad-supported platform.
Palestinian leader praises Russia, condemns U.S.: Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met Russian President Vladmir Putin on Thursday, offering appreciation for Russia’s role in the Middle East peace initiative while repeating his criticism of the U.S. Abbas said, “We don’t trust America and you know our position. We don’t trust it, we don’t rely on it, and under no circumstances can we accept that America is the sole party in resolving a problem.” Abbas, who met with Putin at the Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia in Kazakhstan, added, “Russia stands by justice and international law and that is enough for us.”
Photo by Gage Skidmore / Flickr Creative Commons
