'Stop the war' and Zelenskiy won't speak, UN Security Council chair tells Russia

 It was to be Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskiy's first in- person appearance at a U.N. Security Council meeting on Moscow's invasion of his country, and Russian Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia objected to him taking the floor before the 15 council members.

Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama, serving as president of the tense session, responded with a gibe at Moscow, which has long said the invasion does not amount to a war but was a "special military operation".

"I want to assure our Russian colleagues and everyone here that this is not a special operation by the Albanian presidency," Rama, known for a piercing sense of humor, said to muted laughter across the room.

"There is a solution for this," Rama continued. "If you agree, you stop the war and President Zelenskiy will not take the floor," said Rama, whose country serves as president of the council for September.

Nebenzia went on to say the session was a show and criticized Rama for what he said was a political stance rather than an act of a neutral guardian of procedure.

In seeking to justify its invasion, Moscow has said Ukraine's ambitions to integrate with the West - including NATO - pose a threat to Russia's national security.

When given the floor after the back-and-forth, Zelenskiy suggested Russia be stripped of its veto right as one of five permanent members of the post-World War Two U.N. Security Council as punishment for attacking Ukraine.

Zelenskiy said the only way to a lasting peace was a full withdrawal of Russian troops and restoration of Kyiv's control over its territory within the 1991 borders following the fall of the Soviet Union.

https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/currency/US-DOLLAR-RUSSIAN-ROUBL-2370597/news/Stop-the-war-and-Zelenskiy-won-t-speak-UN-Security-Council-chair-tells-Russia-44888419/

Bank of America to raise minimum wage to $23 an hour in October

 Bank of America will boost its minimum hourly wage to $23 in October as it heads toward a goal of raising hourly pay to $25 by 2025, the company said in a statement Wednesday.

The pay bump translates to a minimum salary of almost $48,000 a year for full-time employees, according to the second largest U.S. lender.

BofA has increased pay several times in recent years, starting with a move to $15 an hour in 2017.

"Providing a competitive minimum rate of pay is foundational," Sheri Bronstein, the bank's chief human resources officer said in the statement.

https://www.marketscreener.com/quote/stock/BANK-OF-AMERICA-CORPORATI-11751/news/Bank-of-America-to-raise-minimum-wage-to-23-an-hour-in-October-44887404/

GM, UAW gap 'is very big,' source says

 A source close to the talks tells Yahoo Finance negotiations with GM (GM) have hit some road bumps.

GM has apparently continued its “dialogue” going with the UAW, the source said, but the “gap is very big” compared to where the two sides are currently positioned.

Finally the source said it was not clear at this point which UAW demands were the most important, or needed to be included in any deal.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/uaw-strike-ford-canadian-workers-reach-deal-gm-uaw-gap-is-very-big-source-says-175602964.html

Fed leaves interest rates unchanged at 22-year high, signals one more hike in '23

 The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady at a 22-year high on Wednesday while signaling another rate hike will be needed later this year to bring inflation back to its 2% target.

The central bank maintained the range for its benchmark interest rate at 5.25%-5.5%, but held projections for interest rates to finish the year in a range of 5.5%-5.75%, implying one more rate hike this year.

Twelve members of the FOMC saw one more rate hike needed this year while seven members wanted to keep rates at current levels through year-end.

Officials now see interest rates falling by 0.5% next year from the expected peak rate range of 5.5%-5.75%, implying holding rates at higher levels for longer than forecast earlier this year. In June, officials officials penciled in a full percentage point worth of rate cuts for 2024.

In its statement, the Fed said future rate hikes would be contingent on the impact of previous rate hikes on the economy, the lagged effects of policy, and economic developments.

"In determining the extent to which additional policy firming may be appropriate … the Committee will take into account the cumulative tightening of monetary policy, the lags with which monetary policy affects economic activity and inflation, and economic and financial developments," the statement read.

Fed officials noted they still view inflation as "elevated," and that they remain "highly attentive" to inflation risks. Still, officials lowered their outlook for inflation, which they now see ending the year at 3.7% from 3.9% forecast in June. Officials see inflation falling even lower next year to 2.6%, in-line with forecasts from June.

The Fed acknowledged that job growth has slowed, and the central bank now sees unemployment clocking in lower this year at 3.8%, down from the 4.1% previously forecast, and holding at that level through 2025.

The outlook for GDP was revised higher for the year to 2.1%, up from 1% previously. Next year’s outlook was also raised to 1.5% from 1.1%.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/federal-reserve-leaves-interest-rates-unchanged-at-22-year-high-signals-one-more-hike-in-23-180117610.html

'DHS unveils strategy to combat fentanyl, other illicit drugs'

 The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has unveiled a new plan aimed at cracking down on illicit opioids such as fentanyl.

The strategy broadly seeks to curb the international and domestic supply of illicit opioids, target opioid traffickers and work with private industry as the government clamps down on the drugs.

“For more than five years now, fentanyl has been causing so much loss of life and destruction in our communities,” DHS Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said in a statement Tuesday.

“We in the Department of Homeland Security, along with our federal, state, and local partners, are committed to combatting this scourge and protecting American communities from it,” Mayorkas added.

The DHS secretary said the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) strategy “will help further align our intelligence and field operations to keep fentanyl off the streets and bring ruthless cartels and criminal organizations to justice.”

The DHS said the strategy was “in line with President Biden’s National Drug Control Strategy,” including by using financial and customs data to block illicit shipments from coming to the U.S.

Biden’s own plan is focused on increasing treatment for addiction and fighting drug trafficking.

According to a 2022 study in the Journal of the American Medical Association, adolescent deaths by black-market fentanyl and related synthetics rose from 38 in 2010 to 884 in 2021. Fentanyl’s rise within the underground counterfeit pill market is largely attributed to it being strong, cheap to produce and addictive.

“Our nation continues to face an unprecedented epidemic of deaths from illicit synthetic opioids – our citizens are dying every year at an unimaginable rate,” Katrina Berger, HSI executive associate director, said in the announcement this week.

“This is a bold and innovative strategy to stem the flow of dangerous narcotics and directly addresses the public health emergency this opioid crisis has become,” Berger continued. “It provides a framework for coordinating our efforts to surge operations, increase targeted inspections, and collaborate with our partners.”

https://thehill.com/policy/4213683-dhs-strategy-fentanyl-illicit-drugs/

Paul will hold up any spending stopgap that includes Ukraine funding

 Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) announced Wednesday he will hold up any funding bill to keep the government open past Sept. 30 if it includes funding for the war in Ukraine.

“Today I’m putting congressional leadership & @POTUS on notice that I will oppose any effort to hold the federal government hostage for Ukraine funding. I will not consent to expedited passage of any spending measure that provides any more U.S. aid to Ukraine,” Paul wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. 

That means if Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) wants to add Ukraine money to a stopgap measure to fund federal departments and agencies, he would have to go through the time-consuming process of filing cloture and scheduling a vote to end debate on the bill, which would take a few days.  

The country risks a shutdown if Congress doesn’t pass what’s known as a continuing resolution (CR) to keep the government open past Sept. 30.

The problem Schumer faces is that Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) hasn’t been able to muster up enough votes in the House to pass a CR and send it to the Senate.  

The impasse in the House is holding up action in the Senate, giving Paul leverage to threaten Ukraine funding.  

President Biden has requested $24 billion in security and humanitarian aid for Ukraine.  

Senators are scheduled to receive a classified briefing on Ukraine at 5 p.m. Wednesday ahead of a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday in the Old Senate Chamber. 

https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/4213732-paul-will-hold-up-any-spending-stopgap-that-includes-ukraine-funding/

Protara starts Phase 1b/2 carcinoma trial

 Protara Therapeutics, Inc. (Nasdaq: TARA), a clinical-stage company developing transformative therapies for the treatment of cancer and rare diseases, today announced that dosing is now underway in its Phase 1b/2 ADVANCED-2 trial evaluating intravesical instillation of TARA-002, the Company’s investigational cell-based therapy, for the treatment of high-grade non-muscle invasive bladder cancer (NMIBC) patients with Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG)-naïve and BCG-unresponsive carcinoma in situ (CIS). In addition, dosing is progressing in the ongoing ADVANCED-EXP trial started earlier this year with preliminary results expected in the first half of 2024.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/protara-therapeutics-announces-dosing-first-123000211.html