November 11, 2022

UKRAINE | Today is day 260 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here are your updates:

• Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said yesterday that Russian forces are apparently laying large numbers of landmines in and around the southern city of Kherson as they withdraw from the city. Russia's defense ministry said this morning that its troops have completed their withdrawal from the city. [more]
• The Associated Press cites unnamed U.S. officials as saying the U.S. has agreed to purchase 100,000 rounds of howitzer artillery ammunition from South Korean manufacturers to provide to Ukraine. [more]
• U.S. officials announced yesterday that a new $400 million military aid package will be provided to Ukraine. The new aid will consist largely of ammunition for air defense systems, missiles, mortar and artillery rounds, and grenade launchers. [more]

U.S. MARKETS AND ECONOMY | Major U.S. stock markets had their best day in over two years yesterday, and global markets rose significantly as well, after U.S. Labor Department data showed that U.S. consumer inflation rose at a lower-than-expected 7.7% rate in October, compared to the year-ago period. [more]

TRUMP INVESTIGATIONS | Trump Organization Senior Vice President and Controller Jeffrey McConney testified in the New York fraud trial of the company yesterday that he prepared misleading tax returns to help company executives avoid paying taxes. McConney was granted immunity to testify as a prosecution witness. [more]

STUDENT LOANS | U.S. District Court Judge Mark Pittman yesterday blocked the Biden administration plan to provide up to $20,000 in student loan forgiveness per borrower, saying the 2003 law on which the plan was based did not authorize such relief. White House officials said the Justice Department has filed an appeal of the ruling. [more]

WEATHER | Tropical Depression Nicole is expected to bring heavy rains and possible flooding to the eastern Ohio Valley, Mid-Atlantic, and New England regions as it moves northward through Saturday. [more]

U.S. MORTGAGES | Mortgage firm Freddie Mac says the average interest rate for a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage in the U.S. rose to 7.08% this week — up from 6.95% last week. [more]

FOREVER CHEMICALS | California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced yesterday that his state has filed a lawsuit accusing 3M, Dupont, and 16 smaller companies of covering up harm caused by so-called “forever chemicals” that have been used in consumer goods and industry since the 1940s and have been detected in waterways and human bloodstreams. [more]

CHINA | Chinese officials confirmed today that President Xi Jinping, in his first major overseas trips since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, will attend both the G20 summit of industrialized nations in Indonesia and the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in Thailand this month. [more]

SOUTH PACIFIC | Tsunami advisories have been issued for American Samoa, Tonga, and Niue after a 7.3-magnitude earthquake struck overnight in the sea about 130 miles south-east of Tonga. [more]

CLIMATE | A new report from the Global Carbon Project says worldwide burning of fossil fuels released 1% more carbon dioxide in the air this year, compared to last year. According to the Global Carbon Budget 2022 report, carbon pollution in China was down 0.9% during the report period, but up 1.5% in the United States. [full report] [more]

ENVIRONMENT | The U.N. Environment Programme has announced that it will launch a new platform next year to track emissions of methane using data from satellites. The Methane Alert and Response System will release its information 45-75 days after it is gathered, giving companies time to lower their emissions before the information becomes public. [more]

HUNGARY | Reuters cites an unnamed European Union official as saying that Hungary has taken a "significant step" toward securing billions in economic stimulus funds from the E.U. by accepting demands on the assurance of an independent judiciary. [more]

SOUTHEAST ASIA | The Association of Southeast Asian Nations said in a statement today that it has agreed in principle to admit East Timor as the group’s 11th member nation. [more]

INDIA | U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is meeting with Indian leaders today in New Delhi. Talks are expected to center on supply chain diversification, the war in Ukraine, and the economic effects of COVID-19. [more]

SOCCER | In its first home defeat in more than five years, the U.S. women’s national soccer team lost, 2-1, to Germany last night in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The U.S. team has now lost three games in a row for the first time since 1993. [more]

NFL | The District of Columbia has filed a consumer protection lawsuit against the Washington Commanders football team, team owner Daniel Snyder, the NFL, and league commissioner Roger Goodell, alleging that the defendants colluded to “deceive residents of the District of Columbia about their investigation into a toxic workplace culture that impacted employees, especially women.” [more]

TODAY IN HISTORY | On this date in 1918, the Allied powers and Germany signed an armistice document in the railway carriage of Ferdinand Foch, the commander of the Allied armies, and World War I came to an end. [more history]