Tuesday Morning Briefing: World stocks at six-month high as NAFTA deal eases trade war fears

Highlights

World stocks rose to a six-month high, lifted by investor optimism that a U.S.-Mexico deal to overhaul NAFTA will go some way to averting a global trade war.

A federal court ruled that North Carolina Republicans illegally drew up U.S. congressional districts in the state to benefit their party, suggesting that new lines be crafted before November’s election.

Video game maker Electronic Arts canceled three tournaments of its Madden NFL 19 football game to review safety protocols after a competitor who lost a tournament attacked with a gun, killing two gamers and wounding 11 others.

 

Exclusive: U.S. Army forms plan to test 40,000 homes for lead following Reuters report https://reut.rs/2PLdkav

4:20 AM - Aug 28, 2018

World

Special Report. The global warming tradeoff of Brazil’s agriculture boom: Over the past decade, an area the size of South Korea has been cleared in the Cerrado, Brazil’s vital savanna. Here’s what that means for the country – and the world.

Russia will next month hold its biggest war games in nearly four decades, Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu told Russian news agencies, a massive military exercise that will also involve the Chinese and Mongolian armies.

Facebook said it was removing several Myanmar military officials from the social media website and an Instagram account to prevent the spread of “hate and misinformation” after reviewing the content. Two Reuters journalists have been detained in Myanmar since Dec. 12, 2017. At the time of their arrests, they had been working on an investigation into the killing of 10 Rohingya Muslim men and boys in a village in Myanmar’s Rakhine state. Read the latest updates.

Commentary: Over the past decade, while consolidating its status as a regional financial center and international business hub, the UAE has quietly become a rising military power in the Middle East, writes Nael Shama, a researcher and writer on Middle Eastern politics. Since the Arab Spring, the UAE has pursued an increasingly assertive and interventionist foreign policy, the effects of which are most evident in the Red Sea basin and Horn of Africa. Here, the UAE has sought to become a major political actor, maintaining a formidable military presence, handing out lavish economic aid and taking on the role of kingmaker and peace broker.

Sponsored by IBM: Let’s put smart to work. Technology today is smart. But is smart enough? You have to know how to apply it, train it, trust it, and make it secure. Let’s put smart to work. Learn how to put smart to work.

Business

Nestle, Starbucks wrap up $7.15 billion licensing deal

Nestle and Starbucks said they had concluded their licensing deal for the Swiss food giant to market the U.S. coffee maker’s packaged coffees and teas around the world.

1 min read

Tesla's U-turn puts it back at square one on cash

Elon Musk’s take-private plans for Tesla have evaporated, but the company’s looming debt needs remain. With a debt load of about $10.5 billion and the possibility of an impending cash shortfall, Wall Street expects the luxury electric carmaker may need to raise funds before long.

5 min read

Apollo Global Management funds to buy Aspen Insurance for $2.6 billion

Aspen Insurance Holdings said certain funds affiliated to alternative investment manager Apollo Global Management will take the insurer private in an all-cash transaction valued at $2.6 billion.

2 Min Read

Top Stories on Reuters TV

Exclusive: Saudi king quashed son's Aramco IPO plan

'Extreme' Vespa enthusiasts rev up at Indo festival